September 19, 2006

Docking Tomorrow

Mission Elapsed Time is now 23 hours and the crew of Soyuz TMA-9 reports all is well in orbit.

Progress undocked from the station so that Soyuz can dock there tomorrow, at 9:30 p.m. Pacific Time.

I’m definitely planning to stay up late until 1:10 am PT to watch Anousheh enter ISS for the first time — the hatch opening and welcoming ceremony will be carried live on NASA TV.

There has been an overwhelming response to this blog. So many great people and friends leaving greetings and great questions that will be read by Anousheh in space. I even saw my good friend Granger Whitelaw, CEO of Rocket Racing League, cheering Anousheh on here today.

So many kindred spirits never met before this conversation began — thanks for joining in!

186 Comments

It’s a great pleasure to see a native-Iranian woman’s dream become true; but don’t think that she was alone! I believe that her family played the most important role for her glorious life till now. If she stayed in Iran and tried to achieve such successes, she could not prevail what we are facing with. I was born few days before Niel Armstrong has trodden over moon surface. So it was my dream also to be an astronaut, or at least a space scientist. But….the role of destiny has done what has done!……Anyway, I hope she will fulfill her mission and come back to Earth and read these comments, and think whether it does worth 20M$ for her trip, or she could pay this amount for other young people to help them make their dreams reality….

I hope this finds you well and you are enjoying your time. I’m very happy for your space trip and your succes. Congratulation. But I can’t believe you have already spent 20 million $ for this. Good for you being so rich. Pray for us to buy a home so my dad won’t work so hard. When you are there, please pray for us, because there you are closer to God.. thank you.. Good luck and I wish one day we see your name among Iranian scientists..]

Hi Anousheh, I have been following the build up to your launch and space flight in the Soyuz TMA-9. being a member of the Northern Sydney Astronomical Society based in Australia. I also do some guide and tuition work at the Sydney Observatory. THUS last night ( the 18th ) a group of School children on a tour of the Sydney Observatory were able to watch with rising excitment the ISS and STS-115 Atlantis rise in the North West sky and traverse overhead to the East. Keen sighted youngsters then spotted the Soyuz following some distance behind. I told them about you and all our best wishes were expressed, wishing it was us looking down,as you must have been doing, marvelling at the images of our beautifull Planet. It must be hard when up there, to imagine the stupid mess we humans are doing to this ‘Oasis’ in the totality of our solar System and do earnestly hope that with this experience behind you that part of your efforts in your company will be put to enable some peace and goodwill to be established to preserve our precious, beautiful Planet.
Best wishes for the rest of your trip ( out of this world for most of us) and a soft landing with you still smiling !! “The smiling Astronaut”.
best wishes from me, Paul Shallow in Sydney.

dear anoushe, you don’t know me. I’m an iranian person. It’s great pleasure to see a native iranian in ISS. I think many iranian would like to hear from you in ISS to speak persian and will give them an persian message.
Anyway, I hope she will always succesful in any term of her life.
Good Luck
kameh

Your mother land Iran is so proud of you. How every Iranian wished if you could travel carring our national flag (which is not representing to our ruler government necessarily)…
the earth would miss you, the daughter of Mother Iran.
Happy Jurney and come back soon,

It’s an honor for me to even be able to put a comment here, I think every single Iranian soul should and certainly does have the highest respect for you, what you’re doing and what you stand for. We need a new word for “غرور”.

I wish you the best of luck, and will certainly be watching the sky Saturday morning at 5:13AM Tehran time waving like Robinson Crusoe…

Looking good! It’s great just watching NASA TV and the coverage of earth – I’ve yet to catch you on one of the clips and would love to see you live. Hopefully some of you are sleeping now? You do sleep in space??

I find the name “Anouseh’s Blog” misleading. The blog does not appear to be written by Anouseh at all but by a number of (probably male) colleagues and officials on Mother Earth. Disappointing. But perhaps Anouseh will start blogging herself once she has settled into the ISS.

I was a tiny contributor to the Ansari X Prize – and I think it must be this which makes me feel so much more _connected_ to Anousheh’s adventure. The other guys felt like “space tourists” whilst you give me hope that I can make it into space too.

One of my favourite books as a child in the 70s was “You Will Go To The Moon”. Maybe one day that promise can still be repaid – and if it is, it’s down to people like you.

Congratulations on the voyage thus far! I have been following the mission progress through this Blog, and i get goosebumps of excitement every time i imagine the amazing things you must be experiencing.
I am a Western Australian space tourism student and hope allow more people to share this awesome experience in the future.
I know you dont like the term “space tourist” so i have some other suggestions: Space voyager, space journeyer, space tripper, space trotter (instead of globetrotter) and space excursionist- no matter what you are to be called, you are an inspiration!!!
Thankyou for sharing your journey with us and I pray it is everything you dreamed of.
-Melissa, Western Australia.

My wife and my three sons, Aidin (12), Azmin (9), And Afshin (5) have been following your journey closely (and of course myself, too). It is most amazing to see my children to be so incredibly interested in your journey to space. Since my wife is Malaysian, the boys naturally consider themselves half Iranian and half Malaysian. They are so proud of your achievement that Afshin now says he is 51% Iranian. Although I believe you will never surpass my sons’ interest in Manchester United, you should know that you are very close to it.

We all wish you a safe journey and when you arrive to earth, you can, after long last, feel that you have arrive HOME.

I am a Chinese and learned this great news from China Radio International. I want to send my best wishes to you. You not only fulfill your own dreams, your dream-tour also proves that all the dream will come true.

Is it possible for you guys to publish the exact time when major events such as docking with ISS is planned for live broadcast? it would be nice to have the times both in PT and the standard GMT as well.

You know,dear Anusheh, be in space is a very nice dream for all people. I’m so happy that an Iranian woman is the first female space tourist. Thanks you and your family for making such this unforgetable honor for Iran and Iranians. Have a nice space trip!

Hi
I jealousy to you.
I am a young Iranian boy i am 15 years old and love Astronomy when i was younger than this.
Astronomy its my life but i could do any work aboud this till now.But only my wish its this which i learn Astronomy.
i live in Lahijan. When my Family – friends or my teacher asked me what whold yo want to be in future. i answerd i want be a Astronomy.But this wish its yonder for me. I have a weblog which thats adres is http://www.lahijnar.blogfa.com this weblog its about my love.when you return to the Earth i love youb check my blog and help me for i get my wish.i am trying for this wish and at the end i havent any thing to say but i am waiting for your inscription in my blog.
Best hopes for iranain Hero.
خواهشا به انتظار یک دوستدار نجوم در ایران پاسخ دهید.
SO LONG

This is so exciting, thanks for taking the time to keep us up to date on all of this. I just found a link here from Scobles blog, he says that you guys knocked him off the top of the list, and he is glad of it.

Looking at role models available to most young ladies these days, I think that more than ever we need some brave/exciting women for them to look up to. Best wishes on your trip Anousheh!

Lucky You! I only can say that and nothing else!
I had a very small question of you! How much is your internet connection’s bandwidth in space? in Suyoz? I guess that you’ve internet access from the Soyuz, not the ISS. That is really cool. I’ll wave my hand for you in saturday morning when you cross Iran in the IIS.
Hope to see you soon in the earth.

We can check Anousheh on NASA TV tomorrow but why you dont tell us about Mr Hamid Ansari and how he feels now?, I cant imagine anyone being as brave as this man to let his loved one go to this mission only to fulfill her dreams .God knows howmuch adrenalin he has released over the last few months, this couple gave a new meaning to a real and true love.

At a time when there is so much negative attention is focused on iran, it is a pleasure to see a native Iranian showing the world how progressive and educated most Iranians are. You are truely an inspiration to not only Iranians, but anybody who works hard and has dreams. Please don’t let anybody deter you from your dreams. Best wishes and come back safe.

We all proud of you! why, because.
Your mission is something beyond the missions of usual people in the world.

Whenever i look at the sky during these days the very first thing comes to my mind is that you are somewhere above us and above many many millionaires those sitting on their expensive cars and thinking that they are kings of world.

Me all of my friends whole family admire you and your mission and wish you a very very fruitful travel

Avast, Ahoy me beauty. While ye be of out on your ship crusin in the fair stars we land lubbers be wishing ye a fine journey and ye be plunder’in some fine booty. So be hostin the Jolly Roger and ready the cannons for ye be coming up to a fine mechant ship upon the horizon ye be boarding and talking over.

For ye scallywags be not knowing what day today be, ye best be checking out http://www.talklikeapirate.com, lest you be scrubbing the poopdeck, for the 19th of Sepetember be International Talk Like A Pirate Day.

Peter writes: “There has been an overwhelming response to this blog”. In case Anousheh is interested, I think the readers of this blog would also be glad to send postcards from countries over the ISS ground track–or the whole planet Earth, for that matter. Greetings and best wishes from Milano, ITALY.

It’s so sad that someone is willing to spend so much money on a cause that helps no one and is strictly for personal pleasure and to server her ego. For example, think about how much you could have contributed towards finding a cure for a disease.

I’m sure that you are not going to let this comment to appear on your web-site.

As an Iranian,I am so proud of your success.You are an honor for Iranians all around the world.I wish the best for you at your wonderfull trip and in your life down here on earth :).
I hope those Iranians who hear from you and your success follow your hard working and your decided personality ,THAN TO BEHAVE LIKE A LOSER.We Iranians can be best IF WE DO AS HARD AS OTHER NATIONS.Success and honor is something to GAIN, not to prized.
GOOD LUCK FOR YOU Mrs. ANSARI ..FROM SHIRAZ,IRAN

The morning you took off I was out pondering the stars and for the first time I thought about the possibility of seeing the ISS or space shuttle up there when I saw a few of the faster moving lights move across the sky.

I, however, never would have thought that there could be someone up there who has perhaps seen or experienced some of the same things as I, being from Plano, having some great friends and family who work at MCI, and now finding myself living in another counrtry too- Sweden.

I wish the press would give you a little more attention, but considering all the recent news of missing nuts and bolts, weird smells and unknown orbital objects, you might have to take charge and straighten these space balls up and show them how things are done!

As of late, due to concern for my Iranian friends, I have submersed myself into the current Middle East crisis trying to sense of it, been reading/bloging non-stop and caught a lecture by Prof. Mohammad Javad Larijani, Ali’s brother, recently. I feel our press has completely misrepresented the situation for the worst, sadly.

I hope the trip goes well and you post some pics of your journey, we’ll try to make sure that the world is still here when you come back:)

Dear Anousheh
Breaking borders of access, braodenning of field of human achievements both on earth and space is something beyond any ordinary task. I am not comparing what youve done with anything else beacause of what you are bringing for humans as total, for Iranians, for women, and for women in Iran as an ever lasting role model. Looks like this was what had to be done now and not later. As an Iranian scientist here at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, I send the warmest greetings to you, wishing good luck and further achievements. درود و سلام به هموطن گرامیم.
Behzad, Baltimore, MD

Wonderful…woman or not…first or not…simply wonderful! I envy you the opportunity to visit space; it has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember! I am a child of the space generation…the first rocket was launched in the year of my birth and I was old enough to see the first manned spaceflight back in the 60’s. My wish is for the space program to get to the point…hopefully in my lifetime…when this is an option for us ‘non-millionaires’…with more than one little spacestation to visit! Best of luck for a safe return, I look forward to reading more about your adventure! Debi

If you get any time, please look at the beautiful, green, Amazon. There are now more clouds above South America but there has been a very difficult long drougth. The polar regions with ice cover are too far away to see from your route, but there would be something to see. In the mid Atlantic there is Category 2 hurricane currently on the Azores but it is in a couple of days brushing west of England and Ireland.

I wish you best for your expedition, I just hate when people say it is another space tourist to turn up. You with your family have well been involved in the field just like professional astronauts but there are always some ignorant people out. Our dream is to put the world’s first glacionauts to travel under thick polar ice sheets and for that I am in talks with Africans. May be, you could give some helping PR to promote that venture.

Albert Kallio

Frozen Isthmuses’ Protection Campaign of
the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans

Dear Anousheh, I’m so happy for you that you were able to fulfill this dream of yours! It must be marvellous up there… Have a great time and enjouy your stay – every minute of it. For when it’s over, all that remains will be memories.

Wish you a safe and good journey !
I think it’s so great to have an Iranian astronaut ! and that shows the popular image about Iranian people(and Iranian women) in the western countries- at least western media!- is not exactly correct .
خانم انصاری :
خدمت شما تبریک میگویم و با تمام وجود برای موفقیت و سلامت شما دعا میکنم شما ما را سربلند کردید !

Thank you for the blog updates Peter! I will be watching tonight too! Anousheh and other early civilian space explorers help to pave the way for when space travel will be quite commonplace for all of us.

I was just wondering, would it be possible to archive all of Anousheh’s video from NASA-TV either at her website or another website for anyone who might have missed them or just for historical reference?

Hey Anousheh,
Bet everytin’z gr8 up tha! Yestaday, been readin thru all tha pagez on the net that wrote about ur past achievements n ur present personality. Well, got a lot 2 tell, but betta just make it short n only say that I pray 4 more suxess be on its way 2 u (that’s 4 sure).
Thought u might also enjoy readin thru a part of an online IMing that I just had with a stranger whom I talked 2 maybe 4 the 1st n last time in my life (metal is him/her n cyber is me):

cybernet: can u c my display image?
metal: yes
cybernet: u know who she is?
metal: i closed that
metal: not important for me
cybernet: it’s Anousheh Ansari
cybernet: don’t u know her?
metal: yes
cybernet: do u know where she is right now
cybernet: she’s somewhere between the lost land and the neverland
metal: i think she is in the mooon
cybernet: not in the moon actually
cybernet: not even ON the moon
cybernet: but on the international space station
cybernet: i’m glad she made it and i hope her all the bests
cybernet: she’s BRAVE
metal: brave or milliyouner?
cybernet: well…
cybernet: u r partly right
metal: 20 million $$ @-)
cybernet: she’s so wealthy
cybernet: yes 😦
cybernet: lol
metal: ok
cybernet: ok
metal: its been a pleasure talking to u
metal: i go to the thinking
cybernet: 4 me 2
cybernet: of what?
metal: and my alonly realm
metal: bye dear
cybernet: have a great time there
cybernet: bye

Peace be upon you. May your dream-come-true be the beginning of the next phase in personal spaceflight activities… May it be the much needed inspiration for the skeptical world and the younger generation…

Mom and I are so pleased you’re safe. I wrote an article about your mission for Social Studies. I am in 6th grade in Kingman, AZ.USA. Your training may have been short, you are an Astronaut. Good Luck with your experience. We catch the overhead flights as often as we can. The sky is usually clear here, as they must have been for you as a girl. Cheers, Trevor

Congratulations on all your achievements to date. You are a credit to your country (the US and Iran), your gender, and your generation. Hopefully many will follow in your footsteps and contribute to advancement of the human race.

To the brave space tourist…Anousheh Khanom…salam! I am so happy that you made this great success. Please! Please! Anousheh! share your success even more with all Iranians and persian speakers and talk to them in farsi…it would be great if you could read a persian poem in the space to them. IT WILL BE SOOO GREAT! hatman inkaro bokonid.

Dear Anousheh.
I am a Swedish woman working in Africa. I am also one of the space dreamers (seems there are many of us). I think what you are doing is showing the universality of being a human – adventure, determination, courage and much more. Long live the human spirit which is within all of us! Yes, your trip gives me, gives us inspiration. I also think it is ok that while many people – rich or not – spend money finding cures for diseases, secure good basic education for all children, etc, some other people spend money on paving the way for new things, like human space exploration. Good luck and have a really nice trip (I am envious of you!)
Anneli B

Well done, although a bit pricey, if you can afford it, grab your dreams, you earned it with all the hard work. If you are passing over Ireland, can you get a pic and publish ?? ( only kidding, you will be far too busy!!) Best of luck, and safe journey, and as Spock would have said ” Fascinating “. Watch out for those pesky cosmic rays !

Dear Anousheh,
You made all of us to feel honor from beeing IRANIAN. We are waiting to meet you in IRAN. Please expend a little of your time and money to improve iranian clever youngs.
Wish you health and success
Afsaneh

Anousheh-
Congratulations from a fellow George Mason Alum (Patent Law 1997), and fellow Space Adventure dreamer. Thanks for your family’s sponsorship of the Ansari X-Prize. Congratulations from my 8 year old daughter Rachel who is literally looking up to you and saying, “You Rock!” Travel safely.
Ralph Albrecht

Congratulations on this trip and your personal success. As an American science teacher I hope your educational experiences will be shared with students not only in America, but in the world to inspire the youth of tomorrow to keep the dream alive to travel to the moon again and beyond! Having spent two weeks at space academy for educators this summer I am so envious of your opportunity! I would love to have you as a guest speaker in my classroom!!

Dear Anousheh,
I am so thrilled for you. Eversince I met you a few years ago in San Jose, CA, I have been impressed by you and your visions. You are a great role model and an inspiration for all, and especially the Iranian community. I can’t wait for you to come back and share your experiences with the world. you are the best.

Dear Dear Anoushe ,
i didnt sleep lasnt night becuase i was very worry about you ,
i will pray for you so much to have a nice trip in spase and i hope you come back to the earth and plant your tree in the special garden in the station ,
im counting the second to see you in ISS when you are passing the sky above TEHRAN on 23 sep 5:13am

Dear Anousheh,
It Was A pleasant surprise to see you at the space station on the news. I have followed your progress since and I’m looking forward to watching the Doc with ISS early tomorrow. Minou and I are very proud of you and we are looking forward to seeing you when you get back from this historical journey.
Your Proud friends
Saadi and Minou Darvish

As a brazilian citizen I congratulate you for your courage and also for your initiative in opening a new chapter in the history of Space Exploration. Many young girls and boys all over the world dream with space, stars and with becoming cosmonauts like you are. I hope their dreams also come true and when this moment comes we, human beings, will be able to think globally and our goals, wishes and dreams will take the right direction: a peaceful world in which science and religion, men and women will work together in order mankind may understand our universe as a huge complex structure to be explored. You, the astronauts with you and the pioneers of space from the last decades are contributing to spread the idea that space exploration is vital to ensure our future as a civilization that has learnt to decipher the laws of the universe. Exploration of the space near Earth is the first step, and the space beyond Earth will be the next, and the space far beyond our solar system will become the next target and … so on. Imagination is unlimited. I wish you and the other astronauts good luck in this mission. Thank you.

In answer to 119-notsomean, in fact: the $20m is going to finance the space program which has turned out masses of new medical knowledge. This is both via biological research in micro-gravity out there, and in monitoring of the astro-cosmo-nauts. Before you opine on space matters it would help if you would get the facts, sir or madam. Space tourism is a device to keep the space program going. Aside from all the jobs (every dollar and rouble) space spinoffs had been myriad, far more than you imagine. The entire hi-tech I.T. age is a space spinoff. NASA spends (via pay packets) a sum equal to 10% of what the US consumer spends on alcohol. Any economic activity generates big tax money for the government to spend on medical advance because only bustling economies such as The West can afford it. The new tax from economic activity, that is new products, generated by Apollo, for example, were, by 1969, estimated to be $3 for every $1 NASA spent and, by 1982, estimated to be $20 for every $1. Space may TAKE money upfront (to pay workers) but on balance it MAKES money.

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